1991 Studio #126 – Jeff Kunkel

The Card

Studio was a premium issue from Donruss. Except for the burgundy borders, I really liked the concept. The photos were simple, artistic, black and white studio shots. But what I liked most about the photos was that they showed personality, something that was always lacking on the field and in media interviews. We needed something like this.

This shot of Kunkel is one of the best in the set.

The Player

The son of an umpire, Kunkel was a good amateur multi-sport athlete. He was drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 1st round (3rd pick) of the 1983 amateur draft.

Kunkel was a mediocre hitter in the minors and an awful hitter in the majors. He was only an a average fielder, but he probably kept his job because of the shortage of quality middle infielders in the 80’s.

“The manager,” Kunkel said in 1984, “said I would play every day no matter what. But then, I was just filling in. Baseball had always been so easy for me and it became a struggle. My frustration would build up and carry over. I don’t think I was handled right and it put me in a shell.”